Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Grow Local Colorado potlucks are inspiring, delicious and hugely successful! This event is a great way to connect with others who are interested in Colorado's urban agriculture scene AND get out the word about your projects and passions! Bring information to share.

$5 donations will be gladly accepted to help fund The Grow Local Colorado Campaign to expand vegetable gardens in Denver's parks.

Bring food and libations to share. Think "Colorado" when planning what to bring -- dishes from local growers, wine from Colorado wineries, recipes from Colorado chefs. Since this is a Zero Waste event, please bring your own plate, silverware, glass and napkin.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

We're holding an "open house," so everyone can come by and meet the chickens and dwarf goats (including two baby goats!). Come visit their barnyard, and get the opportunity to see how chickens and goats can live in an urban setting.

Denver's City Council will vote sometime soon on lifting restrictions on Food-Producing Animals in the city. Part of raising awareness about this issue is showing just how do-able urban chickens and goats can be, so stop by and spend a little time with the animals! Note: This activity is not a formal class in urban chicken and goat keeping; just an opportunity to visit the animals.

We will also be offering organic, heirloom seedlings for sale -- just in time to plant in your garden, or give as a Mother's Day gift! Heirloom varieties of tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, squash and cucumbers will be available.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

I've recently finished reading a wonderful book called "Better Off" by Eric Brende. Brende and his wife devoted 18 months to living with an Amish-like community to explore whether modern "conveniences" really make life easier.

The author's realizations about work and community really resonated with me. He articulated a phenomenon I've experienced time and again while working with Heirloom Gardens. Here's a sample of what he has to say:

" 'Many hands make work light.' This statement was true, though hard to explain. Gradually, as you applied yourself to your task, the threads of friendship and conversation would grow and connect you to the laborers around you. Then everything suddenly became inverted. You'd forget you were working and get caught up in the camaraderie, the sense of lightened effort. This surely must rank among the greatest of labor-saving secrets. Work folded into fun and disappeared. Friendship, conversation, exercise, fresh air, all melded together into a single act of mutual self-forgetting. "